An Indonesian official described the forest fires causing haze across Malaysia and Singapore as a natural phenomenon, claiming that Indonesia's forests also supply oxygen to its neighbors.
Syahganda Nainggolan, head of Indonesia's Government Communications Agency, stated that the government understands the concerns raised by Malaysia and Singapore over the ongoing haze from forest and land fires.
"We hope our neighbors understand that this is beyond human error; this is truly nature," according to an Oct. 10 report by Indonesian national newspaper Kompas.
He noted that the government continues to explain the haze situation to Singapore and Malaysia, detailing the measures currently being taken to tackle the blazes.
He added: "We're not just sending over the haze. When there's no haze, we send oxygen. The oxygen from Singapore and Malaysia is from our forests, right?"
Nainggolan also confirmed that Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim sent a delegation via his foreign minister to discuss the fires with Indonesia's foreign minister.
According to The Straits Times, Indonesian authorities welcomed assistance from Singapore and Malaysia to combat the haze-inducing fires, though officials expressed a strong preference for ground crews over aerial support.
Berton Panjaitan, acting spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), told the Singaporean newspaper on Oct. 10 that deploying ground personnel is far more practical than utilizing aircraft.
He explained that severely low visibility renders helicopters largely ineffective, making ground-based firefighters the most useful form of foreign aid.
The forest fires have worsened air pollution in the region.
The blazes across Borneo and Sumatra islands, intensified by a turbocharged El Nino weather pattern, have caused severe regional air pollution and triggered tens of thousands of respiratory illnesses.
Swiss air quality monitor IQAir ranked Singapore as the world's most polluted city on Oct. 9 and Oct. 12 while Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur has been ranked among top five most polluted cities for several days.
Kuala Lumpur's iconic skyscrapers, including the Petronas Twin Towers and Merdeka 118, partially obscured by thick haze, while pedestrians can be seen walking through hazy streets, Oct. 9, 2026. Video by Viory
In response to the persistently unhealthy air, the Singaporean government has activated medical subsidies to provide affordable care for haze-related conditions while Malaysia has suspeneded schools in several heavily affected areas.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said last week that Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto had "agreed to take necessary steps" to address the choking haze following talks between the two leaders, AFP reported.
Anwar did not provide specific details regarding these steps.
The Malaysian prime minister stated he also instructed his foreign minister to request a meeting of the 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to discuss the pollution crisis.
Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan announced on Monday that he would raise the issue of transboundary haze at an ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting ahead of the bloc's 49th summit in Manila next month, seeking a regional mechanism to tackle the problem, according to AFP.